Saved By The Career
by It's Fun Being Me
Summary: Torn, abused, and near to death, Peeta struggles to survive in the 74th annual Hunger Games. Luckily for him, help arrived in a very unlikely form. Peeta/Cato
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Hunger Games.

Warning: There will be smut. But you'll have to wait :)

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There Peeta was, helpless, lying in the wake of his own demise. It was only a mater of time before the boy would bleed out. At least it wouldn't be as painful as being stabbed by Cato's sword again, the boy figured. Peeta had decided to accept Haymitch's advice from day 1, to accept the probability of him not making it out alive. The words rang in Peeta's head, repeating themselves over and over. Accepting his death, Peeta had done. However, the boy had not given up on Katniss, not yet. She still had a chance to win this. After Peeta would die, she would only have 4 opponents left.

Fox Face, District 5, she may be timid and nimble, but it's clear the girl knows her way around.

Thresh, District 11, he's definitely bigger than Katniss and could pose as a real threat.

Clove, District 2, she's small and agile, and with her daggers she's very deadly.

Then, there's Cato, District 2, he's lethal and relentless. Strong and powerful, he definitely poses a threat. He seems determined to win, wiling to do anything to snap the last bone in his victim's body. While joined with the Careers, Peeta noticed he seems to be quiet, and only talks when he needs to. Silent and deadly. There was a mystery surrounding the boy, like he had a hard past. Maybe his parents died, or maybe he lost his girlfriend. It could've been the fact he was trained to kill since birth. Either way, underneath the rough exterior, he seemed vulnerable inside. Or Peeta was just letting the heat of the day get to him...

That was very possible, considering he had been lying in the sun all day. He had diguised himself fairly well, covering himself with rocks and moss from the surrounding areas and using the dirty, soil, and some very cleverly placed rocks to hide his face. He just needed to keep hidden a little longer while his wound finished him off. Either way, the sun was just barely going down, and he was sure the Gamemakers had plans to finish off the tributes.

Peeta sat for a minute, soaking up all that had happened since he had gotten here. It was all too overwhelming. The blond boy took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself. He closed his eyes, hoping for some of his nerves to calm. Peeta had been on high alert ever since the games had started, hoping there was no one behind him with a knife or worse. It felt nice to let all of his worries fade for a moment. He took a few more deep breaths, soaking in what was left of the sunset.

Suddenly, the boy was roughly pulled off of the ground by someone much larger than him. Peeta opened his eyes in panic to see Cato lifting him up.

"Cato!" Peeta yelped. "How'd you find me?" The boy struggled to try and free himself. He looked into Cato's ice cold blue eyes. The taller boy didn't speak, and instead eyed the trail of blood leading to Peeta. "Fine." Peeta sighed, giving up hope. "Finish me off." Cato, not even blinking an eye, dropped the boy to the ground, and started to drag him away. This clearly didn't help Peeta's already injured leg. Cato kept pulling the smaller boy for a few minutes until he stumbled upon a break in the rocks. The break went in rather deep and hollowed out to be somewhat of a miniature cave. Cato effortlessly pulled Peeta into the cave and dropped him.

"Did you take me here to be killed without my screams being heard?" Peeta asked.

"No." Simple as that, Cato responded. For some reason, what the Career was saying was true. Peeta could feel it. "Stay here, I'll be back," Cato started to walk away.

"Wait." Peeta said. "Then why did you bring me here?" but it was too late, Cato had already left. 'Stay here, I'll be back' Peeta thought. If his leg was that of a normal tribute Peeta would have ran for it, but seeing as it wasn't, Peeta wasn't in any shape to be ignoring orders. Soon enough, Cato reappeared with a wet cloth. "What's that for?" Peeta questioned, rushing to cover his mouth before Cato could gag him with it. The ice cold eyes met Peeta's in disbeleif, and then rolled in annoyance. Cato bent down, and grabbed Peeta's leg.

"Calm down. If I wanted to hurt you, you'd be dead by now." It's true, Peeta thought. He seemed to recall how quickly Cato killed during the Cornucopia massacre. The brute Career began to wrap the cloth around Peeta's leg. Quickly, his wound was tied up rather tightly. "Let it sit with that for the night." Cato commanded.

"Why the hell should I trust you?" Peeta squirmed back further from Cato. His eyes once again filling up with fear. "How do I know this rag isn't wet with some kind of poison?" Peeta accused.

"You don't." Cato replied. The tall masculine blond walked away and sat near the entrance with his sharp and large sword in hand.

For some unspeakable reason, Peeta suddenly felt safe. Whatever Cato decided, Peeta was glad he chose that when he did, or Peeta could be dead right now.

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Sorry the 1st chapter isn't that good. But the story will get better I promise. Please review!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Hunger Games.

Warning: There will be smut. But you'll have to wait :)

Holy Mother *spits out coffee* I don't think I've ever had 8 reviews for the 1st chapter before. I like you people :)

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Peeta woke up on the cold, hard ground of the cave the next morning. This was a good sign, Peeta decided. It meant that Cato hadn't chosen to slit Peeta's throat last night, or worse. The very thought of Cato's blade on Peeta's neck had the boy feeling his throat. Shivering at the thought, Peeta decided to make sure that Cato wasn't hiding to prey on him once he woke up. All it took was a few glances around the walls of the cavern, there weren't any hiding spots.

He wasn't near the entrance where Peeta last saw him, before falling victim to his dreams, and he wasn't in the cave anywhere. There was no sign of Cato anywhere. More shivers crept up on Peeta while he slowly crawled back to the nearest wall of the cave, at least he knew the Career wouldn't be there. Slowly, the boy grabbed a sharp rock to his right, and held it out as if it were some sword.

"Cato, if you're here trying to kill me, just do it already." Peeta whined. "It's enough that you helped carry me here, and then took watch over night, but you still stabbed my leg. You're the one that gave me this injury!" Peeta yelled. "So don't act like we're friends!" The blond boy jumped as a squirrel crossed the opening of the cavern. The boy's hand shot over his heart as it raced. Yes, Peeta realised that it was a little ridiculous to jump at such a thing, but in a game of life or death, it's impossible to be too careful. Careful. It reminded him of how _not careful_ Katniss was. She must be doing amazing, Peeta thought. She probably has another tribute in her sights as he thinks. It also reminded him of how dangerous Cato was. Images flashed in his head of Cato murdering the tributes at the Cornucopia, and more of Cato thrusting his sword into Peeta's leg.

"What are you cowering for?" Peeta jumped as Cato returned to the cave. His menacing voice already barking for answers.

"I-I-I," Peeta stuttered. Scrambling, Peeta regained composure, pointing the sharp rock at Cato as if it would defend the boy. "Where have you been?" Peeta eyed the brute suspiciously.

Nothing.

The Career stood motionless, folding his arms. The two made eye contact for another few seconds, which seemed to travel on for hours.

"Tell me." Peeta demanded. Swiftly, the Career slapped the rock out of Peeta's hand, and the boy already felt the edge of the blade on his neck.

"If I wanted you dead, you would be by now." Cato slowly pulled his blade off of Peeta's neck. "I was out hunting." Peeta was too frightened before to notice that Cato had 7 birds and a squirrel, shish cabob'd on to a stick. "I already ate my share." Cato said before tossing it to Peeta. The animals had already been fried.

"Why are you doing this?" Peeta asked. "First, I'm basically a slave for you and the other Careers, next I'm a target, and now you're protecting me? What the hell?" Peeta questioned.

"Don't ask!" Cato yelled. The Career thrust his sword into the ground next to Peeta. The brute had an intense looks of anger on his face, or was it frustration? Peeta believed that there was something more to him at the moment. Something had obviously happened within the past few days to outrage him. Maybe something or someone had him wanting something, but he was being kept from it. Either way, Cato was upset. The next thing Peeta knew, Cato was sucking back all the emotion on his face and hiding it away, back to his dangerous face that he wore usually. He turned his head sideways, trying to avoid Peeta's gaze and slowly pulled his sword out of the ground. "I didn't mean to scare you." Cato said. The taller boy walked back to the entrance of the cave, baring his sword in case of an emergency.

Peeta finished his meal in silence, seeing as Cato wasn't willing to speak. Needless to say that wasn't anything new. He didn't dare to speak to Cato about where to throw away the bones, so he tossed them aside.

Suddenly, Cato had risen up from his crouched state and exited the cavern.

"Where are you going?" Peeta called after him.

Nothing. Again.

"Jesus." Peeta sat back against the cave wall, partly annoyed. "What does a guy have to do to get an answer around here?" He rolled his eyes. Throwing a bone to the other side of the cave, Peeta was trying to calm himself. The baker's boy rolled his eyes and looked outside, wishing he had a good leg so he could just run away. After a moment of staring he noticed a bush moving more than it normally should. This caught Peeta's attention.

"Cato..." Peeta called out to the bush, that rumbled a little more. "Cato?" The bush seemed to rumble even more. Peeta then noticed a crowd of deer running away, directly from the bush. This worried Peeta somewhat.

"AH!" A scream, definitely human, yelled in the distance. It was obviously a threatening scream, meant to scare something. Whether or not Cato was around, this was certainly another tribute. It must be Thresh, Peeta decided. It's not Cato's yell, and it was male. Seeing as the other 3 tributes were all girls, it had to be Thresh.

"Cato!" Peeta called for help. If Thresh found him, it was the end, and he wouldn't make it painless either. "Cato!" Peeta called again. "CATO!"

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Okay, next chapter is when the interesting stuff happens. Please review.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Hunger Games.

Warning: There will be smut. But you'll have to wait :)

I will probably only be able to update once every week. I just started school :/

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Peeta could hear feet moving on top of the cavern. The boy nervously waited for Thresh to show some sign of knowledge. He expected some sort of stomp, or verbal saying wondering why the rock was hollow. Obviously, you could tell that the rock wasn't full the second you stepped onto it. It was only a matter of time before the brute went searching, and Peeta had to hide. Where? There wasn't anywhere in the cave. Everything was in plain sight. Peeta stared outside, knowing it was his only hope for survival.

"God help me." Peeta whispered as he lifted himself up on his injured leg. The blond limped slowly towards the entrance, and peered outside. No sight of anyone. Thresh or Cato. Perhaps Peeta decided too soon, because at that moment, he saw Thresh, making his way towards the water. Peeta had to be quiet, and he had to be fast.

5...4...3...2-

Peeta had sprinted off. As best as the injured boy could anyway. Every other step the boy struggled not to trip and fall down. Tree after tree, Peeta endured. Until finally, his weak leg gave out, and the baker tumbled down by a fallen tree. Peeta had fallen with a thud. He blinked repeateadly, trying to refocus his vision. Now he was lost, and could already feel his head-ache. Peeta sighed in frustration.

"Katniss, where are you?" Peeta shoved his head in the ground. Though it had seemed like forever for Peeta, he only made about 30 yards at best. It would have to work, the boy decided. He crawled to the other side of the fallen tree in hopes that it would provide some coverage. Soon enough, he heard footsteps, running towards his direction. Did Thresh see him, Peeta wondered. He slowly lifted his head and saw, indeed, that Thresh was running. However, it seemed as if he was running from something, not chasing after Peeta.

"Stay away!" Thresh threatened as he stopped dead in his tracks. The tribute grabbed his oddly curved sword and stood his ground, ready for battle. Peeta looked far off in the distance and saw Cato rushing towards him, sword already out, ready to kill.

Peeta needed this to pause. Everything was happening too fast. Except, there was no time for breaks.

"You're mine Eleven!" Cato jumped at Thresh, and swung his blade down with great force. Both titans clashed, baring their swords. The career tried striking a few more times, but to no avail. It seemed that Thresh had practiced just as much as Cato.

"Don't think it'll be that easy." Thresh commanded. "I'm winning this for Rue." They exchanged a few more strikes before Peeta swore he saw sparks fly off of their colliding blades. Strike after strike, they were evenly matched.

"You're not the only one doing this for someone else!" Cato yelled, and struck Thresh's sword with a big enough force to knock it out of his hand. "It's already over." Cato spun his sword and darted towards Thresh. Swiftly, Thresh moved out of the way and struck Cato's back. The silent guardian fell down on his hands and knees from the blow. "If that's how you want it-," Cato lifted himself up, sword back in hand. "I'll be happy to abliege." There was a quick swoosh when suddenly-

"AH!" Thresh yelped as a dagger flew into his arm from the forest.

"Don't act like nobody could hear you with all this yelling." The boys paused and looked around. Clove then emerged from the forest. "You all ready to die?" She asked, another dagger already in her hand. "Which stooge goes first? Moe? Larry?... Or Curly?" Clove turned to Peeta, making sure that everyone knew he was there.

"Peeta?" Cato spat. "I told you to stay where you were."

"I would've, I promise, but Thresh was wandering around." Peeta stared back at Cato, who had a betrayed look in his eyes. "I had to do something. Or I would've died." Clove and Thresh's eyes lit up as they realized the two were working together.

"Still need a babysitter Peeta?" Thresh laughed. "Well, I can always take you out first. It's not like you'll put up much of a fight. Especially with that leg." The beast eyed Peeta like he was fresh meat.

"Not if I kill you instead." Cato threatened. The, possibly former, Career moved in the way of Thresh and Peeta. "Peeta, I want you to run back to where you were before." Cato had been very discreet, not giving away any signs of where their base was. "I'll meet you there later." Peeta had barely gained enough strength to stand, let alone run back. Cato's plan is suicide, Peeta thought.

Still, this was no time to worry about if he would make it. Peeta had to cut and run, no looking back. The boy took a deep breath and started to dash off, hoping for the best. Barely making it anywhere his leg was already starting to give in. Peeta just had to push through. It was either a little pain, or his life. Strangely enough, the noises of battle hadn't seemed to quiet down. It wasn't until then that Peeta noticed they were following him. Suddenly, a dagger flew right next to his face, and impaled a tree within a foot of his head.

"I'm after you twelve!" He heard the razor voice of Clove yelling to him. Another dagger flew by, barely ripping the material of the shoulder on Peeta's shirt.

Everything was happening too fast again. It all led up to a giant crash, which boomed throughout the forest. Then...

Silence.

However, Peeta refused to look back. Finally, the boy broke out of the woods, and reached the cavern. Staring inside, he stood at the entrance, taking in all of what had just happened. It took what was left of his strength to get him here, and yet, his face met the hard, cold, and muddy floor. Peeta had collapsed.

"Peeta!" He could hear Cato calling. The boy sighed in relief, at least Cato had made it out alive. "Peeta!" He called again. "Peeta!"

"Cato." The best Peeta could do was say the Career's name loudly. Anything beyond that, and Peeta would be passed out.

"Peeta!" Cato shouted as he saw the boy. He had that frustrated look on his face again, which made Peeta nervous. The last time Cato was like this, he was unpredictable. He almost killed Peeta. "Peeta!" Cato lifted the boy by his shoulders. "Why? Why didn't you just stay in the cave?" He shook the baker.

Peeta stayed quiet.

The tribute could see in Cato's eyes that he was hurting, but from what?

"Are you okay? Why did you leave? Why don't you trust me?" The questions were all coming together, Peeta could tell why Cato seemed to be hurting. It was betrayal, or something just as bad.

"Are_ you_ okay?" Peeta asked.

In the heat of the moment, things really came together. Cato cared about Peeta, definitely more than what was safe. He wanted to guard him to keep him alive, because Cato needed Peeta.

Peeta could tell by the way Cato had just kissed his lips.

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Well? What did you guys think? Review and tell me please! :)


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Hunger Games.

Warning: There will be smut. But you'll have to wait :)

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Peeta stood in the midst of the heat, shocked by what just happened. Cato had just kissed him. He didn't know how to respond. A leather killer kissed him, and judging by the look on Cato's face, he didn't know how to react either. Then suddenly, anger filled his eyes.

"This never happened!" Cato yelled and shoved Peeta down. The brute stormed into the cavern breathing heavily, not willing to stop for anything.

"Wait Cato," Peeta clenched his leg and slowly crawled inside. "What-who-why-Why'd you kiss me?" Peeta asked. Again, Cato kept up his strong façade, staying silent throughout Peeta's question. "Cato, talk to me." Peeta tried. Silence. "Damn it Cato say something!" Peeta yelled stumbling to get on his feet.

"I told you it never happened." Cato stated. "So stop talking about it!" Even in the dark, Peeta could feel Cato's eyes stabbing into his skin. It was clear he didn't want to be around Peeta anymore, but where was Peeta supposed to go. He couldn't move very far with his leg, and he'd be pretty easy to chase after if a career found him. So the crippled boy decided to sit down and be quiet, very quiet. If Cato got angry enough, there's no telling what he would do to Peeta.

The rest of the day went by dragging on. Peeta was happy when it finally got dark. It meant he could sleep the rest of the night away and keep out of Cato's way.

Cato.

That was all that had been on Peeta's mind the whole day. After that kiss there were so many questions wrestling through Peeta's brain. The boy was confused. It might be love that had pulled Cato into the kiss. It might have been that Cato was feeling vulnerable, and it happened in the heat of the moment on accident. Or it could be that Cato hasn't had his manly "needs" fulfilled in a while. Back in District 2 he probably had girls fawning over him, willing to kiss his feet for anything.

Through all of this thinking Peeta had only wondered how Cato felt about it. It struck him, he hadn't even thought of if he had enjoyed it. That in itself was confusing. There were too many conflicting emotions. He liked the way it felt, enjoyed how Cato took over so effortlessly. On the other hand, he was unsure about Cato, whether he was really safe with him or not. On top of that, if they even did like each other, it's not like people would support it. Then blood rushed to his face, and his eyes widened.

What if they saw and aired the kiss? Peeta could be as good as dead already. God knows that no one's died for a while, and the crowd is probably getting hungry for some news. Clove and Thresh had just been knocked out at best, no cannons were sounded. Peeta shook his head, there were so many problems that had occurred today. The fight, the kiss, and now the districts could've seen it. Good luck getting sponsors Peeta, the boy thought to himself.

After some debating. Peeta decided to tackle this one problem at a time. First, the kiss. It started off as an inner battle, whether he could trust Cato or not, whether or not Cato had feelings for the boy, etc. Peeta decided to test the latter one. The question was, how to go about doing it. Peeta already seemed out could, and the cavern was already getting cold.

That was it. Peeta smiled.

"Cato," Peeta started off very shyly. "I'm re-really cold, a-and I'm tired too." Peeta looked up to Cato with puppy dog eyes.

"_What do you want me to do about it_?" Cato asked very aggressively.

"Wi-will you come lie down and wrap me in your arms?" Peeta asked, and then suddenly realized how ridiculous it sounded. "Just till I calm down and get to sleep." He added.

"No." Cato answered. "I have to watch out for more tributes." The brute turned around, facing the opening. His bright ice-blue eyes stared out in the distance, making sure he didn't miss anything.

"Please." Peeta begged.

"_No_!" Cato shot around. "Look, there's nothing between us!" Suddenly Peeta felt as cold as Cato's eyes looked. "Forget about the fucking ki-," Cato cut himself off, staring out into blank space. The bulk one shook his head and continued. "kiss. And by the way, I'm only protecting you because I like to hunt my targets when they're at their best, otherwise it's not the same. Enjoy the protection, because it won't last much longer. In the next few days, I'll set you out in the wilderness like a deer. Then guess what, It's hunting season, and I won't hesitate to gut you like a fish I just caught." Peeta gulped. Cato was certainly a killer, and not to be trusted. "Don't take it personal, it's just the rules of the game." Cato spat and walked back towards the cave's entrance. "Now leave me alone."

Peeta turned away, coming to a fast conclusion about the kiss. It meant nothing to Cato, he probably just got in the heat of the moment. Another conclusion was made in Peeta's head. Get out. Fast.

Peeta tossed and turned throughout the night, having nightmares about Cato chasing after him. How easily it would be for the career to snap his neck. No where was safe in the whole arena. No where.

Suddenly in the middle of the nightmare, Peeta felt safe... and comfortable... and warm? His eyes peered open very slightly, and the boy found his arm being covered in another, more muscular one. He felt protected, feeling Cato's chest meet his back, and the second Peeta saw a flash his golden hair, he could fal back asleep now. Happy. Maybe he did like Cato.

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Sorry for the really long wait, I feel awful about it I promise. But please review anyway =)


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